Paintings

Thursday, October 30, 2014

So this week the subject in Lilla's class is Home Decor. The assignment is to create a pattern for a plate and some other smaller dishes. This is what I have done so far. I am not sure if this is the one I will be turning in or not. I need to sleep on it a bit. It isn't due until Sunday night at 5PM.

You may recognize the gold flowers as being from one of my paintings. The design itself is supposed to be based on the idea of a suzani. I had never heard of a suzani before but here is a link in case you haven't either. I read where the traditional suzani has the colors of black, white and pink. I couldn't do pink. But I did add a bit of red to it. I think it looks rather Christmas-y.

I am really having fun with this class. It is a real challenge to make something that would be marketable. I am not really a trend setter or follower if you get my drift. Never-the-less, I am learning a great deal even if I never sell a thing!

I am actually taking another class called "The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design". At first I thought that taking both classes at the same time might be too much for me but this class is actually quite complimentary to Lilla's class. It is taught by Rachel Taylor and it is much more about the actual creating of the patterns using hand drawn imagery and then manipulating them in Illustrator and Photoshop. I never really knew how to create patterns in Illustrator. Or I did know and I forgot. Actually I forgot quite a bit about the software but it is like riding a bike--once you learn it, it comes right back to you.

So have a great weekend everyone and don't forget to turn back your clock! Enjoy your extra hour of sleep!

Saturday, October 25, 2014

I think I may have mentioned that I am taking a 5 week, online class called "Make Art That Sells" with Lilla Rogers. You can read about it here

You may ask, why am I taking a class like this since I am clearly retired from the corporate graphic design world! That is the thing about art and design. You can't really retire from it. Imagine if Picasso or Matisse decided to retire from painting! Some of their best work would never have happened. Not that I am comparing myself to their genius but you know what I mean.

So, yes, I am taking this class and it is really fabulous. And I know I have said that before about other classes but this is really intense and hard work worthy! I worked all week as much as possible and was driven and challenged by the endeavor! It felt like I was at work! But it in a good way. Not the snowy-commuting-early rising-late staying-500 people-have-to-approve-your-design-way!

So the first week is designing for bolt fabric. The piece above is the motif I created using hand drawn imagery and then putting them into Photoshop and having at it. It is supposed to be kitchen related using root vegetables and Pyrex. I used watermelon radish since that is what I had on hand. I had no Pyrex so I had to rely on photos I found on the internet. Not the best way for me to draw since I prefer drawing from life but that was all I had for the bowl. I also made a rubber stamp from a sliced watermelon radish.

Friday, October 17, 2014

Friday already? Where did the week go I wonder? I am still working on some new ideas, playing with the acrylics as though they were gouache. I think I might have mentioned before that my first mediums were watercolor and gouache. I love the creamy consistency of gouache and the lovely matte look of them. All they are really is watercolor with white added but they are very different and fun to work with. By adding white to the acrylic in large amounts it is possible to get a similar look.

One thing I have always loved is making value scales. It is fun really to get that tiny increment of lighter color slowly and deliberately. It is especially nice to do it in an actual painting! Arthur Dove was a master of values. You can almost hear the fog horns blowing just from his careful use of value.

Have a lovely weekend everyone and good luck to everyone this weekend in the "Head of the Charles" regatta!

Sunday, October 12, 2014

While I am waiting for my Pattern Design class to begin I thought I would learn how to carve stamps using Speedy Carve Rubber. It is pretty easy stuff to carve. Much easier than carving linoleum or wood. I have done both of those and after a while the old hands take a beating.

I didn't even do that great of a job carving the stamp but I can see the potential for making patterns! I stamped this one by hand in my sketchbook but I plan on putting the stamp design into Photoshop and playing with it there as well. It is still much more fun for me to do things by hand even though I know Photoshop so well. There is just something about the hand vs electronic. I just like the hand made look so much. But I know Photoshop and Illustrator have their uses. I am glad I am getting back into Adobe CS after nearly 4 years away and total software burn out. And I am glad I kept my Wacom Tablet.

I really like the look of the geometric stamps as opposed to the floral and nature shapes. Although I have carved a few of my pod shapes and they look OK. There is a lot to explore here.

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

A couple of new designs I have been working on lately. Just playing with shapes and colors. Trying to get ready for an upcoming class in textile design that I have signed up to take in October. I am still struggling with the repeat idea but I think the class will help me with that.

I am back to working on paper which was my first love when I began painting over 40 years ago. I just love paper. I love the way it feels under the brush and the way it takes the paint. There really is nothing else like it. I know I haven't been blogging too much lately. I have been trying to limit my computer time in order to care for my family and still have time to paint. Something had to go and it had to be computer time.

Artist Statement

For most of my life I have been a painter. I have worked in pen and ink, watercolors, gouache, oils and acrylics. I have always painted the world around me in all its true splendor. For many years I lived in the tropics and painted the lush plant life that surrounded me. When I left the tropics and moved out into the country I painted landscapes of the local farms and my wonderful vegetable garden. Now that I am living part time in the Sonoran desert, I am influenced by the very unique and wonderful looking cactus and flowers I see on my walks.

Thank you for looking at my work and please get in touch if you would like to purchase something.